The singer will have trumped all his other former 1D bandmates by releasing two albums before any of the others have even released their first – although Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson have both unleashed solo singles into the world and Liam Payne and Harry Styles are poised to release debut solo music imminently also.

“There are real signs of growth and development,” he continued in his Style interview.

“Hopefully, as a human being, I’m growing too, in my knowledge and perception,” he added.

Taylor Swift and Gigi Hadid listen to Fifty Shades Darker soundtrack for the first time

Zayn has already offered a glimpse of his more mature sound after partnering up with Taylor Swift for their Fifty Shades Darker smash duet I Don’t Wanna Live Forever.

The song was released in December 2016 and performed well across the world but only topped charts in Sweden and Spain.